Meet The President

About President Holland

On June 1, 2009, Dr. Matthew S. Holland was selected from an exceptional pool of candidates
and was made Utah Valley University's sixth president. Throughout his career, Dr.
Holland has established a reputation as a respected educator, savvy problem-solver
and master communicator. Those traits, along with his pedigree of leadership, will
serve him well as he leads UVU into the future. He is eager to build on the successes
of previous generations and emphasizes the institution's role as a key contributor
to the region's academic development and economic growth.

President Matthew Holland Biography

Matthew S. Holland is the President of Utah Valley University, where he has been serving
since June of 2009.

Before assuming his current position, President Holland was an associate professor
of political science at Brigham Young University, where he taught courses in political
philosophy and American political thought, including BYU's large general education
sections of American Heritage. A popular teacher, his commitment to applied learning
concepts led to his selection as BYU's "Civically Engaged Scholar of the Year" in
2008 by Utah Campus Compact. His scholarly research on how ideals of Christian charity
influenced the development of American political life garnered national attention.
In 2005, he won Princeton University's James Madison Fellowship. In 2007, his book,
Bonds of Affection: Civic Charity and the Making of America, was published by Georgetown
University Press.

He graduated from Brigham Young University with honors in 1991, and was valedictorian
for the political science department. That same year he was awarded the Raoul Wallenberg
Scholarship for a year of graduate study at the Hebrew University of Jerusalem. Before
going on to earn his master's degree and Ph.D. in political science at Duke University,
President Holland served as chief of staff for the top executive of the international
consulting firm Monitor Group and, later, as special assistant to then-Governor Michael
O. Leavitt.

Currently, he serves on numerous community boards, including the editorial advisory
board of the Deseret News and the boards of the Utah Valley and Salt Lake City Chamber
of Commerce. He and his wife, Paige, have four children, Jacob, Mitzi, Grace and
Dan.